MSM and Fried Green Tomatoes

I don’t recall hearing about Fried Green Tomatoes until I saw a movie in 1991 called Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistlestop Cafe. The movie, based on a 1987 book of the same name by Fannie Flag, starred two box office heavy hitters, Kathy Bates and Jessica Tandy, and two relatively newcomers, Mary Stuart Masterson (MSM) and Mary Louise Parker. I was a big fan of MSM from two of her earlier movies, Chances Are and Some Kind of Wonderful and decided to give the movie a chance. The movie was decent, but it opened up a curiosity for what this green tomato dish was.

The only green tomatoes I had heard of before were the unripe kind. I soon learned that green was just another variety grown all over the world. For a recent gourmet club, I had responsibility for appetizers and the theme was “Soul Food”. I went through a number of ideas but kept coming back to the fried green tomatoes. I hadn’t made them before, so I thought I’d give it a try.

These were very tasty.

There is a whole lot of ingredients that come together for this dish.

The tomatoes go into dry, then wet, then dry.

And into the oil.

Beautiful!

I decided to make a dip that I stole from the blooming onion recipe I’ve made for the blog.

An awesome dish.

Fried Green Tomatoes

Makes: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 large egg, lightly beaten

• 1/2 cup buttermilk

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, divided

• 1/2 cup cornmeal

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

• 3 medium-size green tomatoes, cut into 1/3-inch slices

• Vegetable oil

• Salt to taste

For the dip:

• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise

• 2 tablespoons sour cream

• 1 1/2 teaspoons ketchup

• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

• 1 tablespoon drained horseradish

• 1/4 teaspoon paprika

• Pinch of cayenne pepper

• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Mix the dip ingredients and refrigerate.

Combine egg and buttermilk; set aside.

Combine 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, cornmeal, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper in a shallow bowl or pan.

Dredge tomato slices in remaining 1/4 cup flour; dip in egg mixture, and dredge in cornmeal mixture.

Pour oil to a depth of 1/4 to 1/2 inch in a large cast-iron skillet; heat to 375°. Drop tomatoes, in batches, into hot oil, and cook 2 minutes on each side or until golden. Drain on paper towels or a rack. Sprinkle hot tomatoes with salt.

Source:http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/fried-green-tomatoes-10000000461220/